Bill Text: NY A00454 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes the diesel emissions reduction program and the state diesel emissions reduction revolving loan fund.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to environmental conservation [A00454 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A00454-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 454 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 9, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL, CARROLL, COLTON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Environmental Conservation AN ACT to amend the public authorities law and the environmental conser- vation law, in relation to establishing the state diesel emissions reduction revolving loan fund The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The public authorities law is amended by adding a new 2 section 1285-v to read as follows: 3 § 1285-v. Diesel emissions reduction program. 1. The corporation is 4 authorized to undertake a program to provide financial assistance to 5 state agencies and eligible recipients to encourage and support the 6 purchase of new and retrofitting of existing heavy duty vehicles in 7 accordance with the provisions of this section. This program shall be 8 known as the diesel emissions reduction program and hereafter shall be 9 known as "the program". 10 2. As used in this section, the following terms have the following 11 meanings: 12 (a) "Best available retrofit technology" shall have the same meaning 13 as such term is defined in section 19-0323 of the environmental conser- 14 vation law and regulations promulgated thereunder. 15 (b) "Commissioner" shall mean the commissioner of environmental 16 conservation. 17 (c) "Eligible project" shall mean a project for the purchase and 18 installation of best available retrofit technology for heavy duty vehi- 19 cles, including the retrofit of vehicles required pursuant to section 20 19-0323 of the environmental conservation law, and nonroad vehicles as 21 defined by 42 USC section 7550. 22 (d) "Eligible recipient" shall mean any person, municipality or state 23 agency subject to section 19-0323 of the environmental conservation law 24 and any person, municipality or state agency that is an eligible entity EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00864-01-3A. 454 2 1 pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 2005 Diesel Emissions Reduction 2 Program. 3 (e) "Heavy duty vehicle" or "vehicle" shall have the same meaning as 4 such term is defined in section 19-0323 of the environmental conserva- 5 tion law. 6 (f) "Retrofit" shall mean the addition of new or enhanced pollution 7 control after treatment equipment to diesel engines, upgrading a diesel 8 engine to a cleaner configuration, and early replacement of older 9 engines with newer cleaner engines. 10 (g) "Financial assistance to eligible recipients" means any one or 11 more of the following: 12 (i) making loans to eligible recipients for eligible projects, 13 provided such loans (A) are made at market or below market rates, (B) do 14 not have a final maturity of more than the period of probable usefulness 15 as set forth in the local finance law, and (C) have principal and inter- 16 est payments which commence not later than one year after installation 17 of the eligible project; 18 (ii) buying or refinancing debt obligations of eligible recipients at 19 market or below market rates; 20 (iii) guarantying, or purchasing insurance or other credit enhancement 21 for eligible recipient obligations where such action would improve cred- 22 it market access for or reduce interest rates on such eligible recipient 23 obligations; 24 (iv) providing a source of revenue or security for payment of princi- 25 pal and interest on bonds or notes issued by the corporation if the 26 proceeds of the sale of such bonds or notes will be deposited in the 27 fund; 28 (v) providing interest rate subsidy allocations to subsidize loans to 29 eligible recipients made from the proceeds of the corporation's bonds or 30 notes; 31 (vi) providing grants and principal forgiveness; 32 (vii) using investment earnings on moneys in the fund to pay, pursuant 33 to subdivision seven of this section, the costs of the corporation and 34 the department of environmental conservation of administering and manag- 35 ing the program described in this section. 36 3. (a) There is hereby established in the custody of the corporation a 37 fund to be known as the state diesel emissions reduction revolving loan 38 fund (hereafter known as "the fund"). Moneys in the state diesel emis- 39 sions reduction revolving loan fund shall be segregated from all other 40 funds of or in the custody of the corporation subject to any rights of 41 holders of corporation bonds or notes issued for the purposes of this 42 section. Moneys in the state diesel emissions reduction revolving loan 43 fund shall only be used in accordance with the provisions of this 44 section provided, however, that an amount of up to four percent of the 45 fund may be utilized annually by the corporation to pay for costs of 46 administering the fund. 47 (b) The fund shall consist of the following: 48 (i) notwithstanding any law to the contrary, up to four million 49 dollars from state fiscal year nineteen hundred ninety-seven--ninety- 50 eight appropriations, or subsequent reappropriation for such project 51 pursuant to section 56-0603 of the environmental conservation law, up to 52 four million dollars from state fiscal year nineteen hundred ninety-sev- 53 en--ninety-eight appropriations, or subsequent reappropriation for such 54 project pursuant to section 56-0605 of the environmental conservation 55 law, up to two million dollars from the state fiscal year nineteen 56 hundred ninety-seven--ninety-eight appropriations, or subsequent reap-A. 454 3 1 propriation for such project pursuant to section 56-0607 of the environ- 2 mental conservation law; 3 (ii) all moneys appropriated for the payment of the costs of diesel 4 emissions reduction activities and equipment pursuant to section one of 5 chapter fifty-five of the laws of two thousand seven, as reappropriated 6 by chapter fifty-five of the laws of two thousand nine, and as may be 7 subsequently reappropriated; 8 (iii) all moneys appropriated by the state legislature for the purpose 9 of the state diesel emissions reduction revolving loan fund or otherwise 10 transferred by the state for deposit therein by the comptroller as 11 required by law; 12 (iv) payments of principal and interest made by eligible recipients 13 pursuant to loan or other agreements entered into pursuant to subdivi- 14 sion six of this section; provided, however, if such loans were financed 15 by the issuance of bonds or notes of the corporation, deposit of such 16 payments into the fund shall be subject to the rights of the holders of 17 such bonds or notes to receive such monies; 18 (v) investment earnings on amounts in the fund; 19 (vi) any other payments received from recipients pursuant to a loan or 20 other agreement made pursuant to subdivision six of this section for 21 costs of managing and administering the program; and 22 (vii) the proceeds of bonds or notes issued by the corporation for 23 purposes of providing financial assistance to eligible recipients. 24 (c) Additionally, the following sources may be deposited into the 25 fund, subject to appropriation or transfer: 26 (i) all or a portion of moneys paid to the state pursuant to any 27 future reauthorization, reappropriation, extension or expansion of the 28 federal Diesel Emission Reduction Act or adoption of any federal act of 29 substantially similar purpose; 30 (ii) all or a portion of moneys paid to the state pursuant to 31 subsection three of State and Tribal Assistance Grants included in Title 32 VII of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; and 33 (iii) any other moneys paid to the state for deposit in the fund. 34 4. Moneys in the state diesel emissions reduction revolving loan fund 35 may be invested as provided in subdivision four of section twelve 36 hundred eighty-four and subdivision six of section twelve hundred 37 eighty-five-j of this title. 38 5. Moneys of the fund shall be available only for distribution to 39 eligible projects pursuant to this section that are approved in consul- 40 tation with the department of environmental conservation. The department 41 of environmental conservation shall, in consultation with the corpo- 42 ration, develop guidance for selection of eligible projects, which shall 43 establish eligibility criteria for distribution of moneys contained in 44 the fund consistent with the provisions of this section. Subject to any 45 applicable federal requirements, priority shall be given to those 46 projects that will utilize best available retrofit technology and: 47 (a) are subject to the requirements of section 19-0323 of the environ- 48 mental conservation law; 49 (b) maximize public health benefits; 50 (c) provide the most cost-effective expenditure of funds, including 51 reductions in diesel emissions per dollar expended; and 52 (d) serve areas in New York that are: 53 (i) in non attainment of the National Ambient Air Quality primary 54 standards established for particulate matter or ozone; 55 (ii) environmental justice areas as designated by the department of 56 environmental conservation; orA. 454 4 1 (iii) impacted by higher levels of vehicle traffic; or industrial and 2 commercial areas including but not limited to ports, airports, truck 3 stops, rail yards, terminals and distribution centers. 4 6. Moneys in the fund shall be applied by the corporation to provide 5 financial assistance to eligible recipients for eligible projects and to 6 provide for the administrative and management costs of the program. 7 7. (a) Notwithstanding any provisions of law to the contrary, the 8 corporation shall distribute moneys contained in the fund as follows: 9 (i) until March thirty-first, two thousand twenty-four, twenty percent 10 of the fund shall be used to provide grants to state agencies for the 11 retrofitting of vehicles subject to section 19-0323 of the environmental 12 conservation law; 13 (ii) the remainder of the fund shall be used to provide financial 14 assistance to eligible recipients for eligible projects that meet the 15 goal of emissions reduction in accordance with the provisions of this 16 section and in accordance with any applicable federal requirements. 17 8. Eligible recipients may submit applications to the corporation in 18 such manner as the corporation directs. All applications shall include, 19 at a minimum, the following information: 20 (a) Any information required to demonstrate eligibility to receive 21 federal assistance under any federal program listed in subdivision three 22 of this section; 23 (b) Calculation of the extent to which installation of the proposed 24 project will reduce diesel emissions; 25 (c) The air quality designation of the area in which vehicles proposed 26 to be retrofitted or replaced operate; 27 (d) Extent to which the proposed project meets the priority criteria 28 of subdivisions four and five of this section; and 29 (e) Any other information that the corporation requires. 30 9. The corporation, in consultation with the department of environ- 31 mental conservation, is authorized to: 32 (a) consult with any other state agency or public authority which the 33 corporation deems appropriate in the development of the diesel retrofit 34 emissions reduction program developed pursuant to this section; and 35 (b) prepare, in consultation with such agencies and authorities, and 36 make available to the public, diesel emissions reduction program manuals 37 and brochures for the purpose of ensuring that the standards and crite- 38 ria applicable to the program are available to persons who may wish to 39 participate in the program, to facilitate the goals of the program. 40 10. In addition to the powers granted to the corporation elsewhere in 41 this chapter, the corporation may make loans to eligible recipients for 42 purposes of financing eligible projects for which the fund may be used, 43 subject to the limitations of subdivision seven of this section, may 44 accept the obligations of any municipality as security for the repayment 45 of a loan to an eligible recipient, and may assign and pledge such 46 eligible recipient obligations and loan agreements for the benefit of 47 the holder of obligations of the corporation from the proceeds of which 48 such loans are made. Loan proceeds may be disbursed to an eligible 49 recipient in accordance with such restrictions as may be imposed by the 50 corporation in connection with such loan or obligations of the corpo- 51 ration from the proceeds of which such loan is made. In the event a 52 municipality shall fail to make any payment due the corporation pursuant 53 to any loan agreement, financing agreement, or other obligation of the 54 municipality sold to the corporation or issued as security for the 55 undertaking of the municipality thereunder, the corporation shall certi- 56 fy to the comptroller, and notify the chairman of the senate financeA. 454 5 1 committee, the chairman of the assembly ways and means committee, the 2 director of the division of the budget and the governing body of the 3 municipality that such municipality has failed to make such payment. 4 Such certificate shall be in such form as may be determined by the 5 corporation provided such certificate shall specify the exact amount of 6 debt service and surcharge, if applicable, required to satisfy such 7 municipality's unpaid obligation. The comptroller, upon receipt of such 8 certificate from the corporation, is authorized to and shall, to the 9 extent not otherwise prohibited by law and subject to any other 10 provision of law providing for withholding of payments to the munici- 11 pality which take precedence over this subdivision, withhold from such 12 municipality the next succeeding payments of state aid or local assist- 13 ance otherwise payable to it to the extent necessary to meet the certi- 14 fied amount of debt service and surcharge, if applicable, due the corpo- 15 ration and shall immediately pay over to the corporation as a debt 16 service payment on behalf of such municipality the amount so withheld. 17 11. No later than January thirty-first of each calendar year, the 18 corporation shall submit to the governor, the legislature and the comp- 19 troller a detailed report of expenditures of the fund. Such reports 20 shall include at a minimum: 21 (a) An accounting of moneys paid into the fund from statutory sources; 22 (b) An accounting of moneys expended for purposes of administering the 23 fund; 24 (c) An accounting of all moneys paid out of the fund to eligible 25 projects, arranged by project, statutory priority level and area of the 26 state; 27 (d) An estimation of the amount of diesel emissions reduced by the 28 installation of eligible projects financed by the fund; and 29 (e) Any discernible or estimated public health benefit brought about 30 by these diesel emissions reductions. 31 § 2. Section 56-0603 of the environmental conservation law, as added 32 by chapter 413 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows: 33 § 56-0603. State clean-fueled vehicle projects. 34 1. The office of general services is authorized, consistent with the 35 strategy developed pursuant to subdivision three of section two hundred 36 one-a of the executive law, to conduct a project to acquire clean-fueled 37 vehicles [and to develop and acquire the associated infrastructure38including depot construction], and the New York state environmental 39 facilities corporation is authorized, consistent with section twelve 40 hundred eighty-five-v of the public authorities law, to distribute 41 monies for the retrofitting of heavy duty diesel engine vehicles. 42 2. For the purposes of this section, the term "clean-fueled vehicle" 43 shall mean any motor vehicle as defined in section one hundred twenty- 44 five of the vehicle and traffic law, that uses electricity, including 45 electricity generated from solar energy, either stored or generated 46 on-board, as its primary motive force, or that is fueled by compressed 47 natural gas, propane, methanol, hydrogen or ethanol. 48 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 56-0605 of the environmental conserva- 49 tion law, as added by chapter 413 of the laws of 1996, is amended to 50 read as follows: 51 1. The New York state energy research and development authority in 52 cooperation with the department of transportation or the New York state 53 environmental facilities corporation is authorized to make state assist- 54 ance payments to "clean-fueled buses projects" and is authorized, 55 consistent with section twelve hundred eighty-five-v of the publicA. 454 6 1 authorities law, to distribute monies for the retrofitting of heavy duty 2 diesel engine vehicles. 3 § 4. Section 56-0607 of the environmental conservation law, as added 4 by chapter 413 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows: 5 § 56-0607. Other air quality projects. 6 Of monies received by the state from the sale of bonds pursuant to the 7 Clean Water/Clean Air Bond Act of 1996, up to twenty million dollars 8 ($20,000,000) shall be available for disbursements for air quality 9 projects pursuant to this section. 10 The commissioner is authorized in consultation with other state agen- 11 cies as may be necessary, to make state assistance payments or to enter 12 into contracts in the name of the state for projects that will enhance 13 the quality of the state's environment and the state's air quality, 14 including cooperation with the New York state environmental facilities 15 corporation, to distribute monies for the retrofitting of heavy duty 16 diesel engine vehicles, consistent with section twelve hundred eighty- 17 five-v of the public authorities law. 18 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
